The squad selected by Ray Lindwall, Sam Loxton and Phil Ridings were as follows:[2] The team was very inexperienced, with ten of the players never having toured before, and none having gone to India.

Jeff Moss, Trevor Laughlin and Gary Cosier, who had been part of the 1979 World Cup squad, were not selected – they were replaced by Wood, Higgs, Sleep and Yardley.

Peter Toohey, who had impressed with the bat in Australia's 3–2 victory over India in 1977–78, was also overlooked due to a poor 1978–79 test season.

John Inverarity, the highly experienced Western Australian captain and former test player, appears never to have been considered for selection, despite a fine domestic season of cricket in 1978–79.

Those of us that greeted them that year knew little of what reluctant tourists they were, about how they felt cheated and betrayed by their overlords, and how they griped and belly-ached about their touring and playing conditions... All we knew was that Indian cricket was suspended in a bizarre netherworld, one where the world's best cricket players all seemed to be playing in a poorly attended circus in Australia, while second-stringers were sent to our shores.

It will be a real challenge as India is certain to be very hard to beat on its home grounds... We will have plenty of eye-catching performances in both batting and bowling and I'm sure paceman Rodney Hogg is going to be a success on Indian wickets along with spinners Jim Higgs, Peter Sleep and Bruce Yardley.

I feel that players of the class of all-rounder Allan Border, batsmen Rick Darling and Graham Yallop and hopefully myself, will produce efforts that will win us matches and also please the crowds.

He gave Allan Hurst a private batting clinic today and then turned his attention to Sleep, who is gradually getting his confidence back after a difficult beginning to the tour.

The ACB requested the game be relocated closer to Madras to reduce travel time and because Sringara was politically volatile due to the Kashmir situation, but this was knocked back as it was the first time a visiting test team had played in Kashmir and advance ticket sales were heavy.

The match was interrupted by rain and Australia were unable to force a victory, although Higgs and Sleep both picked up two extra wickets in South Zone's second innings.

[17]Rick Darling was cut over the left eye while fielding and needed stitches, meaning he was unable to bat at all.

Hughes wanted to take three pacemen into the test, Dymock, Hurst and Hogg, leaving room for one spinner – Higgs.

As it was the Indians were hardly disconcerted by Hogg who, apart from being unable to achieve any pace, had immense trouble in keeping his front foot behind the popping crease.

The bowler to test the Indian batting was Higgs, who was remarkably tidy for a leg-spinner... suffering only at the hands of Kapil Dev.

According to Wisden: Hogg could not work up speed, and at the start of the Indian innings again had trouble landing his front foot in the right place.

After being no balled seven times in five overs delivered from different ends, Hogg lost his temper on the second evening and kicked down the stumps.

The incident would have fouled the atmosphere had Hughes not taken prompt action, tendering an immediate apology to the umpire and persuading Hogg to express his regret at the end of the day's play.

Australia were 3–77 in reply, 47 behind India's first innings total, at tea on the fifth day, when a rain storm caused the game to be abandoned.

India won the toss and elected to bat; they were 1-201 but the Australian attack fired and they were dismissed for 271, Dymock taking 5-99 and Hogg 4-66 (though he was still no balled 13 times in 15 overs).

[42][43] To make things worse for Australia, Bruce Yardley was injured when a Kapil Dev yorker struck him on the big toe of the left foot, causing him to swell up and putting him in doubt for the fourth test.

Australia managed to bat to safety with a total of 413 with good innings from Hilditch (85), Hughes (40), Border (46), Whatmore (54) and Sleep (64).

[50] Australia played East Zone in Kolkata with Geoff Lawson joining the team; Kevin Wright was rested for the first time on tour, with Graham Yallop taking the gloves.

Hughes explained the generosity of this declaration by stating he was unhappy with the quality of the Cuttack pitch, saying it was one of the worst he had ever played on, and thus of limited use to his team; the idea was to win in two days to give the side more time to prepare for the test match in Calcutta.

Initially the Australians were reluctant to use a still-injured Yardley but a look at the spin friendly Eden Gardens pitch made them change their minds.

Geoff Dymock took four wickets and at one stage India were 4-123 but Yashpal Sharma and Rao dug in and the game ended drawn, with them 4–200.

Lacking in bounce, it was of little use to the wrist-spin of Higgs, and Australia's only finger-spinner, Yardley, failed to reproduce his form of the Indian first innings.

Hughes thought key problems were the failure of the Australian openers to get off to a good start, and dropping of crucial catches.

We expected our openers to play an important role, but Rick Darling, Andrew Hilditch and Graeme Wood struggled the whole way.

[65]In the words of Samir Chopra: The series had many moments of personal success for Hughes' team, but the Australians were always just a bit outgunned and outmatched, and given that they were never very happy, the result was a foregone conclusion.

Between the first Test and the last there was a marked development in Hughes's technique of playing spin bowling, and happily the heavy burden of captaincy had no adverse effect on his batting...